Ryōko Sakaki
}} |kanji = 榊 涼子 |romaji = Sakaki Ryōko |alias = Ane-san (姐さん) |status = Alive |age = |gender = Female |height = |family = |generation = 92nd |cuisine style = |food forte = Kōji |occupation = High School Student |affiliation = Tōtsuki Culinary Academy Polar Star Dormitory |manga = Chapter 7 |anime = Episode 3 (Cameo) Episode 4 (Full Appearance) |voice actor = Ai KayanoMore of Food Wars: Shokugeki no Soma Cast, Spinoff Manga Unveiled Kelley Peters (English) }} is a 92nd Tōtsuki Generation studentShokugeki no Soma chapter 192 and a resident of the Polar Star Dormitory. Appearance Ryōko has long fuchsia hair going down to her waist with split bangs that reach her chest and has orange colored eyes. She has a slender body figure and a large bust. She wears a standard Tōtsuki uniform depending on the season. She wears a pure white chef's uniform when she cooks. Four months after the Régiment de Cuisine, Ryoko has cut her hair, which now only reaches her chin. Personality Ryōko is a gentle and kind member of the Polar Star Dormitory. Compared to her more eccentric dorm-mates, Ryōko is much more level-headed and mature, responding to most situations in a calm and collected manner. She has a tendency to comfort and assist others when they are troubled or upset, namely Yūki Yoshino. Many have likened her to a "big sister" type of personality, mainly some of the female students, who affectionately refer to her as ane-san (lit. Big Sis). History Ryōko was born to the Sakaki family which owns a well-known Kōji and fermented goods shop. Ryōko eventually applied and was accepted into the middle school section of Tōtsuki Culinary Academy. Later she applied and was granted a room in Polar Star Dormitory. She became friends with her fellow 92nd Tōtsuki Generation residents Yūki Yoshino and Megumi Tadokoro and the trio would sometimes practice cooking together. Eventually, she completed middle school and entered into the high school section of Tōtsuki Academy. Plot The 92nd Orientation Ceremony Main article: Introduction Arc Ryōko, together with Yūki and Megumi, was present at the 92nd Generation Orientation Ceremony and heard the speeches delivered by Senzaemon Nakiri and Sōma Yukihira. After the event, Ryōko and Yūki noted that Sōma's demeanor was needed in order to survive in the academy. She then noticed that Megumi was missing on their way to class. Afterwards, Ryōko was cooking together with Yūki for a class assignment.Shokugeki no Soma episode 3 Polar Star's Newest Resident After the first day of school, Ryōko returned to the dormitory as the newest Tōtsuki transfer student, Sōma Yukihira applied and was granted a room. Later that night, Ryōko and some of her fellow dorm residents gathered in Zenji's room to welcome Sōma into the dorm. Eventually most of the residents who came to the party had fallen asleep, but Ryōko and Yūki Yoshino woke up just as Sōma completed a dish for a duel issued by Satoshi Isshiki, a second year Polar Star student and the 7th Seat of the Elite Ten Council. Ryōko and Yūki is briefed by Shun Ibusaki about the cooking duel. He presented a bowl of his Revamped Mackerel Onigiri Chazuke to each of them. Ryōko was astounded by the juiciness of the mackerel, though neither she nor Yūki knew how Sōma had achieved such a texture through broiling. Satoshi explained that he used the French technique, Poêlée, much to the surprise of Ryōko, but even more so that Sōma himself did not recognize the cooking term. As they finished the dish, Ryōko watched as Sōma had earned Satoshi's respect. The next morning, Ryōko and the rest of the residents entered the dining hall to find Sōma there, ready to challenge Satoshi for his 7th Seat. Satoshi denied the challenge, explaining to him the basics of the formal cooking duels in Tōtsuki, the Shokugeki. Tōtsuki Friendship and Rapport Training Camp Main article: Training Camp Arc Sometime after Sōma's [[Mito Vs. Don RS Shokugeki|first Shokugeki]], Yūki gave Sōma a tour of the Polar Star garden. Ryōko in the mean time was busy working in her personal Kōji workshop. Shortly after, Ryōko and the rest of the first year residents received the news of the first roadblock in the Tōtsuki Academy's student whittling process, the Tōtsuki Friendship and Rapport Training Camp. After Satoshi recalled hearing about a previous year when half of a generation was eliminated from this notorious camp, Ryōko and the other first year residents began to worry, except for Sōma. Sōma told them that they have to be in the half that passes the camp. With some encouraging words from Satoshi, everyone calmed down and were more fired up for the camp. The First Day Arriving at the Tōtsuki Resort the Polar Star residents were stunned to see the luxurious venue for their camp. As the students gathered in the Main Hall, Ryōko noticed the strong silence hanging over the students present. Roland Chapelle stepped onto the stage and introduced a group of notable chefs in the culinary world who had volunteered their time to come and help supervise and run the camp. These individuals were the Tōtsuki Academy Alumni, chefs who were among the one percent to graduate from Tōtsuki. While Ryōko and the others stood in awe from the all star line up, the last member of the Alumni, Gin Dōjima, stepped onto the stage and announced that during their time in the camp, all of the students will be treated like employees. Ergo, failure to meet the Alumni's expectations will result in their immediate expulsion. Wishing them well, Dōjima officially commenced the camp. Ryōko bid farewell to the other Polar Star residents as she headed to her first task. After an arduous first day, Ryōko was pleased to know that everyone had managed to pass their first day. Though the students, especially Yūki, expected to have down time now that their day was over, Hitoshi Sekimori informed them that they still had one more task: cook 50 meals for the other guests at the Villa. As she watched as Yūki's demeanor fell by the news, Ryōko could barely contain her laughter. Though the task was daunting after a harsh first day, Ryōko and the others completed the task. With some time to relax before bed, the Polar Star residents gathered in Zenji's room. While most collapsed from exhaustion, Ryōko were among the few to remain conscious. Megumi expressed her doubts in her abilities as she believed that Sōma was the only reason why she had made it thus far. Ryōko and Sōma encouraged her to believe in herself and Megumi cheered up a little. Second Day Main article: [[Yukihira-Tadokoro Vs. Shinomiya ''Shokugeki]]'' The next day, Ryōko and Yūki survived their tasks and returned to the Villa. While most of the other Polar Star members had returned, the two noticed that Sōma and Megumi were not present. They checked the expulsion list but did not see either of their names. The two began to worry about them and after remembering Sōma's reckless behavior, the two began to worry more as to why Sōma and Megumi had not returned. Several hours later, Megumi finally returned where she told the other Polar Star members that she had just participated in a [[Yukihira-Tadokoro Vs. Shinomiya Shokugeki|''Shokugeki'']] which was the only way for her to stay in the school. Sōma returned shortly after and was immediately slapped in the face by Yūki for his recklessness. Megumi calmed her down and told her that it was because of Sōma that she got the chance to show her worthiness to the Alumni. Yūki proceeded to cry onto Ryōko but nevertheless, Ryōko was relieved that the entire 92nd Polar Star generation were still together. The Fourth Day & Breakfast Buffet Challenge By the end of their third day, the students began to feel the exhaustion of the camp. As the Polar Star group prepared to head for bed, Ryōko noticed that their schedules did not have a bed time. Suddenly an announcement was made over the Villa's PA, telling the students to gather in the Main Hall. As the students gathered in the hall, Dōjima stepped onto the stage to announce a surprise assignment. The students will have to pick a breakfast dish to serve to the Villa guests to be served the following morning. The news came as a shock to the students because this assignment meant that they did not have time to sleep. With no time to waste, the students quickly rushed to the kitchens to begin making trial dishes. While Ryōko was busy choosing and making her dish, she noticed several others in the kitchen plagued with doubts over their selection. Nevertheless, Ryōko finalized her selection by the next morning and proceeded to serve her dish. Though the students were given two hours to serve 200 services of their breakfast egg dish, Ryōko passed the challenge along with the others. The Final Day As the camp ended their fifth day, Ryōko and the other remaining students were completely ragged. Like their third night, their final assignment was not listed in their schedule. Dōjima once again stepped onto the stage to commend the students who had made it this far and to give them some encouraging words for their journey after the camp. As he announced the final activity to the remaining students, the doors to the banquet hall opened. He congratulated the 628 students remaining for passing the camp. As a reward, they were given a lavish banquet prepared by the Alumni. Ryōko and the other Polar Star members gathered onto the same table and enjoyed their dinner, happy to have survived the camp. The next day, Ryōko packed her things and returned to Tōtsuki. The 43rd Annual Tōtsuki Autumn Election Main article: Tōtsuki Autumn Election Arc Several weeks after the camp and shortly after the students' summer break, Ryōko and the other Polar Star residents were present when Megumi decided to show everyone her very first "A" grade that she had earned on her own. To celebrate, Satoshi brought everyone into the ping pong room to have a match against Megumi. Ryōko and Sōma had a casual match, which resulted in her loss. However, their match was nothing compared to the showcase of skill between Satoshi and surprisingly, Megumi. Ryōko and Yūki explained to Sōma that Megumi could have been a professional ping pong player had she not devoted herself to the culinary arts. Using a dirty tactic to win, Satoshi revealed that Megumi, along with Sōma, Zenji, and Shun, had been selected by the Tōtsuki Board of Directors to participate in the upcoming 43rd Annual Tōtsuki Autumn Election. Ryōko and Yūki were disappointed to hear that they had not been selected, however Satoshi assured them that there was still 30 slots left for the Elite Ten to fill. Several days after Satoshi's information leak, Ryōko and Yūki arrived on campus for the official reveal of the 60 participants for the Autumn Election. Among the 60 names were both Ryōko's and Yūki's names. Yūki immediately hugged Ryōko out of excitement and the two eventually joined up with the other Polar Star residents after the announcement. Ryōko was surprised to see Sōma getting along with Alice Nakiri, noting his unusual ability to befriend people. Nevertheless, the Polar Star residents returned to the dormitory where a surprise was waiting. The Asura of Cooking Returning to Polar Star after the announcement, Satoshi informed them that Fumio was busy preparing a feast for them. As Ryōko entered the kitchen, she saw a mysterious man cooking there. Fumio introduced the man as Jōichirō Saiba, a former resident of the Golden Era of Polar Star and the previous 2nd seat of the Elite Ten Council. However, much to everyone's further surprise, Sōma revealed that Jōichirō was actually his father. As they entered the dinning hall, Ryōko saw Sōma shaken for the first time as he had just learned about his father's reputation at Tōtsuki as well as his fame as a travelling chef. As they finally settled down to enjoy a feast prepared by a former Elite Ten member, Ryōko and the others were amazed by the depth of flavors they had never experienced before. Allured by Jōichirō's impressive cooking and cool, mature attitude, Ryōko and the other girls began to wonder if Sōma will become like his father in the future staring at him in hope. However, Ryōko and the others were not too surprised by the table of failed test dishes that Jōichirō had made for Sōma and himself, remarking they really were father and son. The next day, Ryōko and the others received a letter, announcing the theme for the preliminary round, a "curry dish". Ryōko decided to spend her summer at home preparing for the election by making a special Kōji for the Preliminaries. The Polar Star Girls Holiday Main article: Natsuyasumi no Erina A few days before the Autumn Election, Ryōko returned to Polar Star to finish her dish there. Unfortunately the heat was unbearable in the kitchen so she along with Yūki and Megumi tried to cool themselves outside to no avail. Ryōko and Yūki became extremely stressed and began to squabble, but Megumi thanked them for the break and the two calmed down and went back into the kitchen to finish their dishes. Tōtsuki Autumn Election: Preliminary Round Main article: 43rd Annual Tōtsuki Autumn Election After a month of preparation, Ryōko arrived at the venue for the Preliminary Round and reunited with her fellow Polar Star friends. After some inspiring words from Senzaemon Nakiri, Ryōko headed to the "A" Block along with Sōma, Shun, and Zenji as she bid farewell to Megumi and Yūki who were headed to the "B" Block area. During the cooking period, Ryōko was among the few to catch the attention of Natsume Sendawara, the CEO of the Haubi Food Cooperation and head judge of the "A" Block. As she was scouted, Ryōko was busy cooking with a mysterious black kōji dish. She could feel the audience watching her, namely her fans in the audience with the girls fawning over her as if she was their big sister while the boys were too busy being enthralled by her beauty. However, the attention from the audience quickly shifted from her to Akira Hayama, the powerhouse of the "A" Block. Ryōko decided to see how Sōma was doing. Much to the shock of the audience and to Ryōko's amazement, Sōma was asleep sitting upright on a stool. As the judging round began, Ryōko gathered with the rest of the Polar Star members in the block and watched as the initial dishes presented to the judges failed to impress them, especially Natsume who refused to give a single point out of the 20 she was allowed to give. This trend ended with Ryō Kurokiba who was not only the first person to earn a passing score, but even managed to impress Natsume, earning a score of 93. Ikumi Mito presented after, followed by Ryōko. She presented her curry dish, a Curry Soy-Natto Rice. Her dish initially was considered plain, but the judges soon discovered that her curry had a stickiness to it due to the usage of natto. While the judges were amazed by the depth of her natto, Ryōko explained that she used charcoal fire-fermented natto made from scratch, which took her all summer to make using an extremely calculated and precise method to create. However, her final weapon, a soy sauce kōji, created a harmonious compliment to her curry, blending and strengthening the flavor rather than overpowering the curry taste. Thanks to her curry, Ryōko earned a score of 86, tying with Ikumi. However, in the end, Ryōko's score was not enough to qualify her for the main tournament and she finished 7th overall with Ikumi. Road to the Main Tournament After the Preliminary Rounds concluded, Ryōko returned to Polar Star where her fellow residents as well as Ikumi, Takumi Aldini, and Isami Aldini gathered into Zenji's room to celebrate Sōma, Megumi, and Takumi's qualification for the main tournament. As the party began, Ryōko noticed that Shun was not there, which Yūki figured that he had shut himself, upset that he did not qualify. Some time during the party, Sōma and Megumi had left the party to talk about the Preliminary Round and their upcoming duels on the balcony. As Ikumi peeked outside, Ryōko and Yūki approached her, asking her what she was doing lurking in the shadows. Returning to the party, Ryōko and the others partied until the morning where they all slept in Zenji's room. The day before the Main Tournament, Ryōko walked into the Polar Star Kitchen as Sōma and Megumi were busy preparing for their matches. Since Megumi was too busy focusing on her dish in her "Hopping Hare" persona, Ryōko decided to help Sōma with his dish. Much to her surprise, Sōma informed her that his first match would be against Alice Nakiri who had scored the highest among all the Preliminary Rounds. Even more so, for the theme of the match, a bento, Sōma told her that he'd be making a Nori Bento. Sōma gave her a prototype of his intended bento and was amazed by the depth of flavor, but Sōma was not satisfied. The two decided to watch some footage of the "B" Block Preliminaries to get a good sense of Alice's cooking style. Ryōko broke down Alice's cooking style and figured that she would go for a dish with impact, however the two could not come up with something solid. Sōma offered a candy that he had received during his trip to the DEF Kitchen and Ryōko noticed a candy maker among them. Suddenly, Ryōko saw Sōma with his mischievous "idea" face and he promptly thanked her for her assistance. Tōtsuki Autumn Election: Main Tournament Quarterfinals When the day of the Quarterfinals finally arrived, Ryōko joined the Polar Star residents in the stands to cheer for Sōma and Megumi. Sōma's match was intense with the expected winner to be Alice, but thanks to Sōma's creativity, he pulled off a surprising win. Megumi followed and Yūki handed Ryōko and the others a few personalized cheering fans to support her. Even with her best efforts, Megumi lost the duel to Ryō, but she received a standing ovation from the crowd. Outside of the arena, Ryōko and the others congratulated Sōma for his win and Megumi for her outstanding performance. The next day, Ryōko returned to watch the final two Quarterfinal matches. To her surprise, the final match between Takumi Aldini and Subaru Mimasaka was changed to a Shokugeki. After a crushing defeat, Takumi lost the match. Outside of the arena, Ryōko and the others were bitter about the results and wanted to go and console Takumi, but Sōma told them that it would be best to give Takumi some space, so they all returned to Polar Star. Semifinals Main article: Yukihira Vs. Mimasaka Semifinal Shokugeki Returning the the dorm, Ryōko and the others were horrified to find Subaru waiting in Sōma's room, having infiltrated it using a duplicate key. Sōma shut everyone out of his room except for Subaru who he invited to eat a beef stew dish. During their conversation, Ryōko and the others eavesdropped on their conversation where they set up their Semifinal match to be [[Yukihira Vs. Mimasaka Semifinal Shokugeki|a Shokugeki]]. When Sōma declared that if he lost the match, he would quit cooking, Ryōko and the others broke into his room to confront him. Just as Ikumi ran out from the Polar Star Dormitory, Ryōko urged Sōma to reconsider his decision and not risk his cooking career for the Shokugeki. However, Sōma's decision was firm and he refused to lose to someone who did not know the true joy of cooking. Finally the Semifinals arrived, Ryōko and the others were ready to cheer for Sōma. To their surprise, even with Sōma's attempt to keep his dish a secret, Subaru was cooking the exact same thing and using the same starting process as Sōma. Throughout the match, Subaru informed him that he had predicted his every action during the match, but even with all of that foresight, Sōma managed to escape Subaru's control and won the match. Road to the Finals (To be added) Finals (To be added) Stagiaire Main article: Stagiaire Arc (To be added) Moon Banquet Festival Main article: Moon Banquet Festival Arc Cooking Style *'Kōji' - Kōji is a special type of Japanese fermented rice often used as a basis for many signature japanese dishes such as miso soup and even sake. Ryōko's family runs a fermented good shop that is well known in the food industry. She shows great knowledge in the field of Kōji, shown making specialized natto and sake. Dishes Original Dishes *'Curry Soy-Natto Rice' - Ryōko's curry dish for the preliminary round. Unlike the natto which is considered as sticky to some, the natto added the self made soy sauce by Ryōko to give an enhanced taste of the dish. Trivia *''Ryōko'' (涼子) is written with the kanji for "refreshing" or "cool" (涼 Ryō) and "child" (子 Ko). Sakaki (榊) refers to an evergreen tree used in a shrine. *There is a running gag that Yūki is often jealous of Ryōko's large bust. References Navigation es:Ryōko Sakaki zh:榊涼子 Category:Characters Category:Female Characters Category:Students Category:Tōtsuki Culinary Academy Students Category:Tōtsuki Autumn Election Participants Category:92nd Generation Students Category:Polar Star Dormitory Students Category:Chef Category:Rebels